Teens chose to save lives instead of sleeping in

POINTE-CLAIRE, QC, 09/11/07

In a lifesaving new twist on “bring your child to work”, tomorrow Pfizer Canada is empowering 20 youths, 16 of which are its employees’ children, to save lives through CPR training. The training is an extension of the company’s employee CPR training program, launched last spring with help from the Advanced Coronary Treatment (ACT) Foundation, as part of its internal health and well-being program. CPR training is directly linked to Pfizer’s strategic imperatives and commitment to the health and well-being of families.

“The children who will be trained on Saturday range in age from nine to 16,” says Stephanie Speth, employee of Pfizer Canada who was trained as a CPR Instructor through the employee program, along with 11 colleagues. “We have done many CPR training sessions at Pfizer, but this is the first time that I will be training my colleagues’ children,” added Speth. Trainers like Stephanie now spearhead the rollout of CPR education to head office and field staff. Some are also extending CPR training into the community; bringing CPR to their families, friends, and neighbours and helping teachers teach the ACT High School CPR Program in local schools.

The ACT Foundation is an award-winning, national charitable organization dedicated to establishing CPR as a mandatory program in every Canadian high school. Since 2000, Pfizer Canada has been an active national-level partner of the Foundation and its mission to promote health and empower Canadians to save lives through the ACT High School CPR Program. Both the employee CPR training program and the idea for employees to then teach CPR to their children are firsts among ACT’s partners.

“Pfizer Canada is playing a lead role in bringing the ACT High School CPR Program to schools throughout Canada, and we’re excited to say is now also a driving force in taking CPR beyond the classroom walls,” says ACT Foundation Executive Director Sandra Clarke. “We are absolutely thrilled with the company’s innovative efforts to bring this lifesaving training into the office, into the home, and into the community.”

About the ACT Foundation
The ACT Foundation is a national, award-winning charitable organization dedicated to promoting health and empowering Canadians to save lives. ACT is driving a national campaign to establish CPR as a mandatory program in every Canadian high school. ACT raises funds for CPR mannequins for schools and guides schools in program set up. Over 900,000 students from more than 1,000 schools have been empowered to save lives through the CPR Program to date. The Foundation and its core partners are winners of Imagine Canada’s “New Spirit of Community Partnership” Award. Core partners are companies in the research-based pharmaceutical industry: AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada, Pfizer Canada, and sanofi-aventis. They provide ACT’s sustaining funding and are committed to the Foundation’s national goal of promoting health and empowering Canadians to save lives. For more information visit: www.actfoundation.ca.